November 6^th, 2011, Feast of Dedication for All Souls Church

Canon Paul Jeffries – Principal of Bishop McAllister

\]College, Kyogyera, Uganda

“I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God,

which is in Christ Jesus.”

Romans  8:38,39

We are all very familiar with the saying that there is nothing certain in life except death and taxes. What a true expression: Taxes are not very pleasant to think about, and death even less so. But, we know that death must be accepted as an integral and inescapable part of life. Death accompanies us through life, as we face the passing of loved ones and friends, and come, each of us, to face our own mortality. So on this day, All Souls day, the Church pauses to reflect on the meaning of our death.

It is a feast which is connected to what we celebrated just a few days ago,  All Saints. There is very little which divides these two solemn commemorations. They form a continued teaching about the wholeness of the entire Church, living and departed. We are taught about the Church militant here on earth. That’s you and me and all the disciples actively at work in the world today. And there is the Church triumphant, which we celebrated Tuesday. The saints, who are with God in heaven, interceding for us by their prayers, surrounding God with their praises. And then the Church expectant: which is what we focus on tonight/today. Those who have died and who are journeying towards their final glory.

The observation of  these commemorations close together, helps us to break down what is an artificial separation and distortion about the members of the Church. The Church is One, we say in the Creed. This means there is not a Church of the living which is separated from the Church for the departed. The departed do not leave the fellowship of the Body of Christ. The unifying bond of Holy Baptism unites us all in the love of Christ, whether sinner here on earth, or saint in heaven, or one of the faithful departed we may bring to mind in our commemoration.

What happens to us when we die? It is such a common question when we are children, but we soon grow away from asking the question openly, but it still is within each of us: “Where do we go?” “Are the dead at rest?  At peace?” “Are they happy?” “Will I ever see them again?”

We have all had these questions raised within us, especially as we have mourned the death of a loved one, or even as we attend the funeral of an acquaintance. For the occasion of a death leaves us with a mélange of feelings: grief and sadness, naturally, but also confusion, doubt, fear and loneliness.

The scriptures teach us,  that the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God. No torment touches them. They are at peace. That we need not worry too much about the state of those who have died, for God’s loving care for us extends even beyond death. We are still held by God in his arms, in peace, forever: their hope is of immortality.

Paul’s words  in Romans 5.8 recall a central teaching of our faith.     

      “But God proves his love for us, in that while we still were

        sinners Christ died for us.”

Indeed Martin Luther made it the central platform of his theology: God loves us, more than we could ever merit. It is a free and genuine love that was best seen in the Jesus’ willingness to lay down his life for us, even though we are in no position to deserve such love and devotion. Yet it is given freely to us. “God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us”. We have here the most eloquent testimony to the intensity and graciousness of God’s love for us.

In John 6.39-40 Jesus says….

  “ And this is the will of Him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but rise it up on the last day. This is indeed the will of my Father,, that all who see the Son and who believe in Him, may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day.”

It is surely one of the most comforting of passages, I have found, particularly when the grieving have been concerned about the eternal welfare of their loved one. When they have questions about their state of being after death. They know that their dearly departed brother or sister was no saint. Yet, as happens to so many of us, we get filled with ideas of a religion that speaks more of judgment than mercy and love. So we yearn to hear something assuring about the future of the soul of the ones we mourn. There can be no more comforting words than spoken by Jesus in those verses: “This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day”.

So here we have it: the teaching about the loving and eternal embrace of God; the intensity of the love with which we are loved. And then in the words of our saviour that nothing shall be lost.

Those words speak of being raised up on the last day. And in the Apostles’ Creed we talk about the resurrection of the body. I do not believe that this means we must expect that some day cadavers will get up and walk around, like some bizarre B-movie. I believe it is another way of underlining the sort of love that God has for us. You see, God knows us by our name, and loves us as sons and daughters, not just as anonymous creatures. Sons and daughters. With God, we will never lose our identity.

“I am the Good Shepherd and I know my sheep.” John 10.14

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are mine.” Isaiah 43.1

 It is a moving declaration that God knows us by our name, and lovingly calls us home to him. And in him we will rise again.. When we are called by name, our identity is upheld and conserved. As Jesus has said , nothing that has been given to him will be lost. So the essence of who we are is assured as we enter God’s loving and eternal embrace. So when we meet again those we love but see no longer, we will know each other, because God knows us, calls us by name. Thus our personal relationships, our friendships, our personality and our love for each other will not disappear. Rather it will blossom, because it will be transformed and enhanced by being wrapped in the source of all love, God himself.

The communion of saints first and foremost the community of God’s loved ones. A community, which means that we will meet again, for that is what communities do. We will meet again. This is our hope. When one of our friends or members of our family dies, and we are left plodding along this life for another while, it is a bit like when you are out with family and friends for a walk in the woods and one goes on ahead, out of sight, over the brow of a hill perhaps.

Our worship tonight/today expresses our confidence in the union of the departed with God, and our living union with them. In fact every Eucharist expresses this faith, for this is the meal of the resurrection. In the Eucharist, the veil that temporarily separates the Church, militant, triumphant and expectant, is opened up. In the presence of the Redeemer of the World we participate in the great communion which includes the saints, martyrs and confessors, as well as all who have fallen asleep in Christ throughout the ages. In this service the whole Church is once again in communion – the living, the departed and the blessed saints in light. To worship at the Eucharist is the most important way we can remember our faithful departed, and be united with them. For those of us who still walk this earth, it is a foretaste of that loving embrace which awaits us all, as God calls us by name and welcomes us home. It is a foretaste of the blessedness which is to come.

Our life’s journey is towards the eternal banquet of the Messiah. We are to live our lives in joyful anticipation of the promised life that is to come. The fullness of life with God promised in the resurrection of his Son is glimpsed at in this Eucharist. For our deceased loved ones, and for us, the best is yet to come.

“I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus.” Rom. 8.38,39  

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.